Basic Pieces of Our Hall Table

Looking out the window, blowing snow and all (in the middle of April??), I don't think my previous post on a spring dining tablescape warded off Mother Nature's winter spell.  Can you believe there was a 28C (82F) degrees difference between these 2 days?   Stop teasing us, and let there be spring already!  On a happier note, I have some exciting news to share!  You may already know about this if you follow me on instagram.  I submitted our dramatic dining tablescape for One Kings Lane's instagram event of #homespringhome. Hubby and I were so delighted that our tablescape was chosen and featured on One Kings Lane's instagram!

Continuing with our spring discussion, our entryway table is definitely ready for it!  The eggs have been laid, so to speak, just in time for Easter.

Soft colourful floral arrangement, easter eggs and nest adorn our baby blue ceramic tree trunk table.  These are the seasonal accessories that we change out of our basic pieces.

Think about fashion for a minute, your wardrobe should have some key pieces.  A crisp white shirt for work, little black dress for those special occasions, and the list goes on.  These can be all-year-round pieces, and you can spice them up for different seasons with jewelries, colour of your bag and shoes.  Any tablescape can move forward in a similar fashion.

The basic pieces on our hall table are the large vase, the glass display box, and the chrome tray. We change out seasonal items in our basic pieces, eg. In Winter/ Christmas season, I would put some glass ornaments in the glass display box, and some pine cones and berries on the chrome tray.  Whether or not the change is done in time is another story...  (It's quite time-consuming and tiring being a hockey mom...  to a preschooler.)  The clock is there to stay because we need to know the time as we rush out the door EVERY morning!

Changing the floral arrangement is quite a hassle (actually, I'm just lazy), so this is usually here to stay for the spring and summer.  This was my DIY project, and I scoured the internet for real-looking faux blooms.  Many of these came as a bouquet, which I just cut them apart with pliers and snips.  I could've easily stopped at just the flowers, but the hall table is under an "open to above" ceiling, and faux branches of cherry blossoms brings the arrangement more proportional to the high ceiling.

As I mentioned in my "Coffee Theory" of tablescapes, with a grande size main piece, the other accessories on the hall table should be more airy.  The half-opened glass display case is perfect in this sense.  The see-through open top gives the vignette an illusion of height, without taking away the importance of the floral arrangement.  It also marks its territory on the table to balance out the grande presence.  Without this piece for mid-height real estate, there would be too much of a distance between the height of the floral arrangement and the other flat pieces on the table.  That will look too much like David and Golliath.

So now, let's get the eggs crackin' and bring on spring!  Happy Easter and enjoy whatever activities you have planned with your family over the upcoming long weekend!

What are the basic pieces on your hall table?  Do you re-dress them seasonally or are they set for life?

Coffee Theory of Creating a Tablescape

This past weekend has been a tease of spring, and my little guy just couldn't wait to take out his scooter for a ride in the still-slushy park trails.  You know it's been an exceptionally long winter when even the little ones are sick and tired of the once-precious white stuff they used to make snow angels and build forts.  Just this morning, I drove through a blizzard (but no worries, it'll be a high of 9C this afternoon, what gives??)  Who knows how much longer it'll take to see some greens for real?  With all the decor stores stocking up for spring home fashion and accessories, they're just too enticing for us green hungry crowd to pass up!

I was referring to myself, in particular.  And so I took home the treasures from my "mini" shopping spree to set the table for an upcoming event.  I shopped around the house and found 2 mismatched off-white pots in similar size.  I figured I would go for a more casual vibe.  I also had a tablerunner spanning the length of the table, on which I placed the centrepieces.  My pieces were mostly same size in width, and so I placed them symmetrically along the table. Remember, odd numbers work best for display! 

Notice the height of the pieces, and this is my first coffee theory.  Think of coffee sizes - large, medium, small.  When layering pieces for any vignette, keep in mind major groupings should be in odd numbers, and varying in height.  This allows your eyes to have a resting spot at each height without missing an object, instead of scanning across items of the same height.  

The Mr. had been eyeing over at my dining tablescape occasionally, and as expected, made some "suggestions".  While I was standing around, trying to picture his vision, he got into action. After some thundering climbs up the stairs, he came back with a floral arrangement that I made for the nook of our staircase.  I made it specifically for that tall nook, with tall twigs holding up branches of (faux) orchids.  Taking matter into his own hands, he moved around the pieces on the table.  "Honey, you need some drama and colours!"  I think he channelled some Karl Lagerfeld as he said that.

My Mr. always surprises me with his brilliant ideas.  I hate to admit it, but he's right.  And this leads to my second coffee theory.  For dramatic effect, think of the drama queen on Starbucks' logo (aka the Siren, twin-tailed mermaid).  You've got a grande main piece for drama, 2 tall pieces, and a grouping of short pieces for balance.  Odd numbers are still in effect, since the eyes would catch the grande and the tall pieces.  With a grande main piece, the 2 tall pieces should have a lighter feel to them to create proper balance.  The bird cages were just perfect - they've got the height, yet are see-through for that airy feel.  

Sure enough, the Mr. always thinks of ways to one-up my initial designs...  but that's how we get better by feeding on one another's brilliant ideas!  So, what do you think?  Do you prefer a casual coffee or the drama queen?  Casual tablescape?  or pile on the drama?